What is the difference between Advertising and Marketing?

In tough times business leaders often target marketing and advertising to make cost savings but as Henry Ford once said: “Stopping advertising to save money is like stopping your watch to save time.”

Ask yourself this question: Do you know any manufacturers or brands that have increased their sales by cutting their marketing and advertising budgets?

In Taiwan many traditional manufacturers have not needed to do marketing and advertising before. There used to be a cycle of good and bad times where manufacturers could weather the tough times with the revenue from the good times. But with online retail and social media the market has completely changed and without effective marketing and advertising, manufacturers in Taiwan are finding it hard to compete internationally.

In this article I will explain the difference between marketing and advertising and why it is important to know that.

Advertising Vs Marketing

The difference between advertising and marketing is like the difference between a single tree and a whole forest.

Advertising is a tree. It’s one piece of the puzzle, often the loudest and most visible. It’s like a megaphone, shouting a message, trying to get your attention. Advertising is what you see in banners, commercials, and ads on social media. Its job is simple: to say, “Hey! Look at this!”

Advertising is about crafting a message, putting it in front of the right people, at the right time, in the right place, and then fine-tuning it until it sticks.

Marketing is the forest. It’s the entire ecosystem of how a product or service connects with people. It’s not just about shouting—it’s about listening, building relationships, understanding what people need, and creating something that resonates with them.

Marketing involves product development, customer service, pricing, branding, and yes, advertising, too. It’s the strategy behind the message, figuring out who to talk to and what to say.
Many companies in manufacturing industries I meet have done some advertising, but few are doing marketing.

Many Companies Get Stuck on Advertising

Many businesses, especially in traditional industries like manufacturing, get stuck on advertising. They focus on shouting louder, believing that if they just spend more on ads, their problems will be solved. But that’s not how it works. Advertising without marketing is like trying to push a car uphill without an engine—it might move for a while, but it’s going to be exhausting, and eventually, it will stop.

Advertising Can’t Fix a Broken Message

If your marketing is strong—if you’ve built a story that resonates, a product people care about—then advertising amplifies it. But if your marketing is weak, if your message is unclear or irrelevant, then no amount of advertising can save it.

David Ogilvy, often called the father of advertising, said, “What you say in advertising is more important than how you say it.” And that’s the key. The content of your message—the why behind what you do—is more important than the ad itself. Without a strong why, even the best-designed ads will fall flat.

Tell your story

As Seth Godin said, “People do not buy goods and services. They buy relations, stories, and magic.” Advertising might get people to notice you, but it’s marketing that gets them to care. And that’s what most companies miss—they’re so focused on selling a product that they forget to build the relationship and tell the story with marketing.

Stories are part of us, we remember and retell stories from our past or our friends. Stories stick, they can be hard to forget. What is your business’ story? Why do people choose you?

Try This Experiment

The first time I meet with a new customer, I like to carry out an experiment:

If a member of the sales team is there or even the General Manager, I ask them to pretend that I am a buyer from a large european company with authority to place large orders with their business. I also tell them that I am easily bored and that they only have 30 seconds to tell me why I should do business with them or I will leave and go to their competitor’s factory instead.

In more than 20 years of meeting companies in Taiwan, only a few have even tried to answer my question. Most companies can’t clearly tell their story, so why should customers care about their advertising?

The Long-Term Impact of Digital Marketing

At the end of the day, advertising is essential. It grabs attention. But it’s marketing that keeps people interested. It’s marketing that builds a relationship. It’s marketing that turns a one-time customer into a loyal advocate.

When companies confuse marketing with advertising, they’re missing the bigger picture. They’re focusing on the tree, but ignoring the forest. And the forest is where the real growth happens.
The difference between marketing and advertising isn’t just semantics—it’s the difference between short-term gains and long-term success. So next time you think about running an ad, ask yourself: What’s the bigger story I’m telling? Is this just a shout for attention, or is it part of a larger conversation with my audience?

As you think about your business, remember: advertising is a tool. Marketing is the strategy. And in the end, the businesses that thrive are the ones that understand and embrace both.